Scoundrel Days - A-Ha > Reviews > Angst never sounded so wonderful

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Definitely a cut above the rest
Lyrics	Thought-provoking
Quality and consistency of tracks	Mixed
How does it compare to the artist's other releases	Good
Value for Money

Advantages:	Soaring, ambitious synth pop .
Disadvantages:	Slightly weaker songs than before .

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Almost exactly 12 months after Aha's first album had appeared, the second - Scoundrel Days - arrived on the back of their most adventurous release to date - I've Been Losing You. Another dark and brooding affair, it completely ditched the perky, synthesized feel of their previous work. Mature beyond their recording years, it was an extraordinary single to issue at the time. Perhaps slightly confused and bewildered, the public didn't quite warm to its charms. It made #8 before swiftly dropping down the chart.

Ironically perhaps, the single wasn't entirely representative of the accompanying album. Scoundrel Days was far from a quantum leap forwards, yet - as on I've Been Losing You - it hinted at a darker, deeper aesthetic and emotional landscape. Both the title cut and The Weight Of the Wind returned to the style first evidenced on The Sun Always Shines.., while October and The Soft Rains Of April touched upon a more ethereal ambience. Again comprising 10 tracks, only the rather throwaway Maybe Maybe and the forgettable, formulaic We're Looking For The Whales let the album down.

Commercially, the lightweight (and rather irritating, it has to be said) Cry Wolf saved the day, becoming one of the biggest hits during that winter. A third single - the fragmented and almost Beatle-esque Manhattan Skyline - fell short of the Top 10 in March 1987, the first A-ha release so to do. It was in fact the album's highlight, deftly incorporating a variety of melodic and lyrical themes into one schizophrenic masterpiece.

Scoundrel Days does suffer from the "difficult second album" syndrome to some extent (side two loses its way slightly), but it's the sound of a band not content with standing still creatively or artistically.